Web services provide a simple, flexible, standards-
based model for binding applications together over the Internet, and taking advantage of existing infrastructure and applications. Web applications can easily be assembled by using locally developed services and existing services, regardless of which platforms, development languages, or object models have been used to implement the constituent services or applications. Features of Web Services
Allow Applications to Communicate Across the
Internet Language Independent Protocol Independent Platform Independent Stateless Architecture Features
Web services represent black-box functionality that
developers can reuse without worrying about how to implement the service. Web services provide well-defined interfaces (called contracts) that describe the services they represent. Unlike current component technologies, however, Web services do not use protocols that are specific to certain object models, such as the Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM), which requires specific, homogeneous infrastructures on the computers that run the client and the server. Features
Web services communicate by using standard Web
protocols and data formats, such as Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), Extensible Markup Language (XML), and Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP). Any system that supports these Web standards can support Web services. The Web services model is independent of languages, platforms, and object mode a Web service allows disparate systems to work together. Examples
a credit-card processing service
a sales tax service package- tracking services from each shipping company an in-house catalog service that connects to the company’ s internal inventory management applications Web Services Execution Model Web Service Model
In the Web service model, the Web service developer:
2. Creates the .asmx file that includes the namespace, classes, properties, and methods. 3. Declares methods as Web methods that can be accessed over the Internet.
Imports System.Web.Services Imports System Class MathService <WebMethod()> Public Function Add(int1 As Integer, int2 As Integer) As Integer return(int1 + int2) End Function End Class Client
In the Web service model, the client:
2. Calls the Web service from the browser to determine which methods are available. When you call a Web service from a browser, you access the description page, which lists the methods that are included in the Web service. The protocol that is used in this case is HTTP, and the data is returned as XML. 3. Calls a method of the Web service from the browser. When you call a method of a Web service from a browser, the protocol that is used is HTTP, and the data is returned as XML. Existing Web Services
You can find existing Web services at the following